conversation from all our guests, it was very feisty and very enlightening. so until next time waj and i will see you online. >> good evening everyone. welcome to al jazeera america. i'm john siegenthaler in new york. >> after weighing all the arguments i have vetoed senate bill 1062 moments ago. >> the decision is in. arizona's governor rejects the controversial bill the critics say would have legalized the discrimination of gays. >> power plays. crowds return to kiev where leaders propose new leadership for ukraine. disqualified, more than 600

soldiers removed from away the army calls positions of trust, including sexual assault. hidden billions, a swiss bank accused of helping americans hide their money from the u.s. and a galactic surprise, several new planets, which could potentially sustain new life. >> we begin tonight with breaking news out of arizona, governor jan brewer has just vetoed a controversial bill that would have allowed business owners to refuse to serve gays by citing their religion beliefs. here is what the governor said just minutes ago. >> after weighing all the arguments i have vetoed senate bill 1062 moments ago. to the supporters of this legislation i want you to know that i understand that long held

norms about marriage and family are being challenged as never before. our society is undergoing many dramatic changes. however, i sincerely believe that senate bill 1062 has the potential to create more problems than it purports to solve. i could divide in arizona in ways we could never imagine and no one would ever want. religious liberty is a core, american and arizona value. so is nondiscrimination. going forward, let's turn the ugliness of the debate over senate bill 1062 into a renewed search for greater respect and understanding among all arizonans and americans. >> many people owned this bill because -- opposed this bill because they believe it provided political will to discriminate. brian rooney explains.

>> protest was loud, where the legislature once again they said made this state look bad. >> i think other pieces of legislation like it really are out of step with the people of arizona. >> opponents of the legislature described the bill as a trojan horse. >> this is discrimination opportunity guise of religious freedom. >> reporter: the bill was written by the christian legal organization, alliance defending freedom and it basically said a person or a corporation could deny service to a customer based on religious belief. >> if you had a jewish deli, who was asked to serve on the sabbath, you wouldn't have to. same sex commitment ceremony that they fundamentally disagree with, they are not forced to do that. >> but under pressure, governor

jan brewer vetoed the bill. many arizonans were asking did the bill really represent what voters think? >> wanted to kick all the mexicans out and now wants to deny gay people wedding cakes. whether or not that is true, that is what comes across. >> many feared that if the bill became law the state would lose business, particularly tourism. the owner of this hotel told us one customer said he would cancel $10,000 worth of business if the bill had become law. that is one small example. some people asked what would happen if football fans decided to stay home rather than come to football at the university of phoenix stadium. giving away nearly 2,000 signs for businesses to display declaring they're open for business with anyone. in this business-minded state support for the bill crumbled even among some of the legislators who voted for it.

>> it is a vote we regret taking and we ask the governor to veto the bill. >> but the damage to arizona's image may already be done. once again making this the state that has the ret rest o -- restf the country say iining what were they thinking? >> from robert ray. >> a controversial bill proposed by the house representatives here in the state of georgia they are calling it the press -- preservation of religious freedom, who believe that homosexuality is a sin to be able to say we don't want to hire you or we don't want to serve you in our restaurant or hotel. but the deal is that the house bill that was scheduled for a hearing on tuesday and again this morning, those were cancelled, so it is essentially not going to happen this session. but a senate bill, senate bill

377, which essentially mirrors that house bill could go to vote as early as this coming monday. it has already cleared the hurdles of the judiciary committee who looked at it and they seem to be a place in which they are potentially ready to vote. mayor kaseem reed came out earlier with statements. here is what he had to say. >> it took me some time to evolve on this issue. i was a long time supporter of civil unions but i believe in equal protection under the constitution and gay and lesbian couples should have the same rights as you and i have. >> delta airlines, the largest employer in the state, came out with the statement: if it passed into law proposals would cause significant harm to people and would result in job losses,

delta's core values of mutual respect. delta strongly post office these measures and we join the business community in urging the legislators to reject these bills. opposing what state lawmakers are talking about, we'll see if 377 comes to vote this coming monday. session is out on thursday and friday as we watch what happens in arizona continue to monitor the situation here in the state of georgia. >> robert ray reporting. back in arizona, governor jan brewer's decision to veto, ben, welcome. first of all, what was your reaction. you're a gay business owner. what was your reaction to this decision? >> i was just extremely relieved. and i'm happy that it was finally vetoed and i just wondered what took so long.

>> yeah, well, the impact you think, even though the governor's vetoed this, do you think it's going to have an impact on the economy? >> i think it already has, and i think the damage is done. the damage has been done, just as it has been with our former failure to observe mlk as a hol take anholiday and the damage is already done and it's going to take several years to recover from this. >> how do you think it took the governor several days to come up with this decision? >> i don't know. i was hoping that she's not playing some kind of psychological game. but as soon as she got off the plane from washington, d.c. yesterday i believe she should have rushed to the capitol and vetoed this bill immediately. i'm not sure why she did that, instead she just waited. >> we have live pictures, i want to take a look at them, outside the governor's office. clearly this has been drawing a

crowd on both sides. i made add. there are people who have strong opinions. but as a gay business owner in the state of arizona, what -- do you think about leaving? i mean do you think about -- keeping your business there? what -- >> oh, no. i absolutely will still keep my business here. i think phoenix is one of the greatest lands of opportunity in the united states. but i do think there is a very voal ak and very -- vocal group in the state of arizona and it's very unfortunate. >> based on what other people's opinions are, whether she vetoed the bill or not. >> well, absolutely. and we've actually had a few people telling us that they were going to cancel their reservations to come to the hotel starting next week and we

heard today that there was a hispanic conference that was scheduled for 2015, that has already been cancelled, and didn't wait for the governor's reaction. >> can the state do anything to try to fix the damage? good you know, i think that if arizona were to try to fix this damage that they should probably enact some legislation to really demonstrate to the united states and to the world, that we need to move forward, that we're ready to move forward, and if that's anything from you know issues relating to business, education, health care, trying to attract more businesses like tesla's proposed $5 billion new battery plant that might come to arizona, maybe passing gay marriage for once and jumping ahead of what the courts will probably decide, perhaps there's a couple of things that we could do to correct the damage that has been done but i think the damage is done and it will take a couple of years to recover for

sure. >> there are other states that propose laws like this. do you think it will affect the political divide that is going on in arizona, all over the country? good i think so, it reflects the political divide, but not as much as it does as the religious divide, in trying to control other people's lives and i think we need to hopefully correct that and learn that really there's no such thing as left or right anymore but there are ideas that work and ideas that don't, no matter what party you belong in. we should focus on what works in this country and not work with those that don't work anymore. >> ben, thank you for your request response to you our reqt for an interview. i appreciate it. >> i don't have any information on which side this group stands but it has been gathering since the governor paid her decision. later on this hour we're going to talk about the pressure on

governor jan brewer from not only business owners but major league sports. another victory for supporters of gay rights this time in texas. a federal judge struck down the state's ban on same sex marriage saying it treats them differently from opposite sex couples. but the judge stayed a motion for appeal. rick perry was quick to criticize the ruling, it is not the role of the government to overturn the will of our chients. what could not be achieved at the ballot box. perry said his state will continue fighting for the rights to determine its own laws. now, to the effort to yufn unife government in ukraine. ousted president yanukovych. facing resistance tot southeast. -- to the southeast.

pro russia demonstrators, fighting opposition leaders in the crimea, he sees worrying signs of separatism there. further east in russia, 150,000 troops are conducting military drills near moscow's shared border with ukraine. secretary of state john kerry says the u.s. is prepared to offer the new ukraine government $1 billion in loan guarantees but he says russia must not get the wrong idea about american involvement in the ukrainian uprising. >> we are hoping that russia is not seeing this as sort of a continuation of the cold war. we do not see it that way. we do not believe this should be an east-west, russia-united states. this is not rocky iv, believe me we do not see it that way.

>> introduced today as the main protest camp in kiev. tim friend is in ukrainian capitol. >> in a freezing independence square the politicians have been forces to consult the -- forced to consult the people who believe they achieved a revolution in ukraine. for those pitching to be part of a new ukraine, yetsenyuk, and yulia tymoshenko's fatherland party. >> this way people feel united. >> we believe maidan fulfilled its role. people need to fulfill their interests. we have to stand for what we want, and they act according to their wishes. that's how we'll get the future that we want.

>> if anyone thought that following the political demise of former president yanukovych, they could now afford to ignore the views of the people here in the square, they'd be playing a dangerous game. suspicion and distrust with the political class in ukraine is rampant. and the public feeds to be reassured that -- need to be reassured that thing really are changing. one graphic examplementmen exame being removed outside parliament. for the protesters this representatived the gulf between the government and the protesters. >> then deputies will no longer be like mice going into a mouse trap. >> the former georgian president no friend of moscow has been advising some politicians here. >> they should deliver every week they should be able to tell people, this week we did this for you.

this week we like say roads, stopped politicians from taking bribes. this week we stopped got rid of these corrupt foreign officials. they have to deliver stuff because these people are desperate, they are fed up with talk. >> the mourning for the dead goes on. more than 100 during three months of protest. the hated riot police are now disbanded and the attorney general has ordered an international search for yanukovych. but judicial delays may mean he is already made good his escape. tim friend, al jazeera, kiev. >> and joining me now william taylor, the former u.s. ambassador to ukraine. welcome ambassador. >> thank you very much. >> where do you think ukraine stands towards a solid government in the future? >> they are trying to put

together a solid government. from my standpoint the people they have chosen for this new government look good, look solid. they for the most part have some experience but there's also a good amount, good number of new faces which as your report indicates, people in the maidan are very interested in new faces and less interested in old faces. nonetheless there does have to be some competence. after consulting with people in the maidan, the parliament, the rada is going to have to ratify this new government. agree that this cabinet is one they want to move forward. an important part of that i think will be a recognition that this government needs to work for all ukrainians. in the west, where the many of the people from the maidan come from, but also, from the east, this government needs to represent those parts of ukraine that used to vote for and

support vurk yanukovych. they need-- viktor yanukovych. they need to be assured that they are part of this new regime as well, new government as well. that i think is going to be a big challenge for the government. >> what do we know about the new prime minister there? >> the new prime minister is an extremely experienced and competent and as near as 9 can tell, clean. -- as near as anyone can tell, clean. not tainted by allegations of corruption. he is 39 years old. he has been the minister of finance, he has been the central banker, he has been the minister of foreign affairs. he has done a range of things. he's been the speaker of the house, speaker of the rada, the parliament. so he has great experience in all aspects of this. again big challenges. he understands the need for a competent government that can negotiate with the imf and the european union and the americans and as well with the russians.

>> well and speaking of the russians they conducted massive military operations today. what are they up to? >> it is a good question. they of course say it is just to test the readiness. that doesn't stand up. they clearly are trying to send signals. but the ukrainians i believe so far and my recommendation would be, don't be provoked. we can recall, in 2008, when the georgians were provoked and they fell into a trap and the russians invaded georgia. that shouldn't happen here. secretary kerry says that should be a grave mistake to invade any part of ukraine. >> how about the economy? how does ukraine get the economy back on track? >> ukraine needs an infusion of cash, of loans. the estimates are 35 billion over two years.

the russians of course have promised 15 billion this year. so the ukrainians are clearly in debt and need cash just in order to pay salaries. this is possible, it is certainly possible. americans have already described a possibility of a $1 billion loan guarantee. added with the imf, the international monetary fund could put together and what the europeans could put together and what the russians could add into the pot, they the ukrainians could make it through. they on the other hand have to take steps to reform the economy principally in the energy sector, to merit the loans from the international community. >> ambassador, it's good to have you on the program, thanks very much for your insight. >> thank you very much. >> coming up. how a united nations official is describing a refugee camp in syria.

the army punishes hundreds of soldiers after a sexual assault review. >> plus drowt relief, california getting so much rain and needed rain, needed for farmers but too much of a good thing could be bad.

>> now to charges of misconduct within the u.s. military. hundreds of soldiers disqualified from sensitive positions after being linked to a series of infractions. john terret here. john. >> members of the military who have been charged with helping fellow soldiers, coping with sexual harassment and rape. the number of personnel disqualified from counseling far higher than it had previously acknowledged. >> last summer, the army said it was disqualifying, from child abuse and drunk driving that was

after an initial review ordered by defense secretary chuck hagel. after almost a year on and combing through the records of another 20,000 soldiers and now says it disqualified 588 in total. that's a tenfold increase. in a statement the army says the army continues to ensure that those in positions of personal trust have the right tools skills and background needed to carry out their duties effectively. we will continue working to better ensure we select the best persons for these posts. >> kim says she was sexually assaulted by this army colonel. >> i opened my eyes and he was in bed with me with his hands down my pants. >> wilson was quighted in a

courts martial. dismissed the verdict and set lieutenant colonel wilkinson free. accord to the d.o.t, there are 19,000 sexual assaults reported. relationship between sexual assaults in the military posttraumatic stress disorder and suicide, afraid for asking superiors for help, for the feesfever being publicly shamed. >> take pro active steps to fix the broken system of justice and survivor response. >> the truth was at that point i had to google what to do when it happened to me. i immediately experienced the flaws and repercussions. >> advocacy for military --

advocates to overturn courts martial verdicts. >> the military justice system is based on individual discretion of a single commander for the rule of law. until you relieve the bias you will never have justice. >> what we don't know is how many of the 588 still hold onto their jobs. the pentagon said to have been looking to fe get rid of 79 of them. >> it is raining in california, but may not be enough to from one of the worst droughts on record. melissa chan is in sebastopol. what are farmers saying about this? >> well, it is rain and it is welcome. we are here at the farm where they have dairy cows.

with the drought that means the cost of hay and grain have gone up. hay and grain need water to grow. the dairy farmers have taken a major hit. they are glad there's rain but dominic puts it all in context. >> this rain here is very beneficial for the short run. it helps all the crops that are growing here, as you can see the grass is green now and so on. it's a typical springtime. but the issues, the drought issues still remain because the dams and stuff where we get water for the summer crops is not there. and this kind of rain will help in the short run but the long run it really doesn't do much for us. >> and so, john, it looks like what they're telling us is you need this kind of rain for the next month or two in order to make any dent on the drought. >> all right, melissa chan. melissa in california, tonight, thanks very much.

just ahead, a superveto, how sports might have influenced jan brewer's decision on the veto. a new investigation reveals shady business dealings to hide tax dollars. a whole lot of new worlds, nasa scientists, more than 700 new planets are discovered.

>> welcome back to al jazeera america. i'm john siegenthaler in new york. a lot to cover this half hour including trapped. tens of thousands of syrian refugees, seeking to get food and shelter. hiding billions from the irs. now the corvette sinkhole on display for all to see. ukraine's transitional government faces a vote in the parliament tomorrow. it comes less than a week since viktor yanukovych was forced from office. warning against a military

intervention in kook. u.s. is ready to offer ukraine a billion dollar alone. in depth review of sexual assault in the military. the pentagon has said, 600 people have been disqualified from positions of drill sergeants, recruiters or sexual assault. >> arizona governor jan brewer has just vetoed a controversial gay rights bill. that measure would have allowed business owners to have refused to serve gays on religious grounds. she's looking for a, quote, reif youd respect. a sad day for arizonans who cherish and understand religious little bit. had governor brewer let the law

stand, there were reports that the nfl might have replaced the super bowl. >> the state of arizona made a strong commitment to sports back in 2000 when it created the arizona sports and tourism authority, to recruit big time sporting events to the area. and there's no bigger sporting event in america than the super bowl which the phoenix area is scheduled to host next year. but as of late this afternoon, the national football league was already exploring the possibility of moving it out of state if the bill was signed into haw. peter thanks for taking the time this evening. >> sure michael. >> league policies prohibiting, to vee stow this bill? >> i think the nfl made it

pretty clear that they would consider moving the game to another venue if that bill had been signed. so it's also a factor as the business community's swift response but obviously you can't turn away four to $500 million that the game can generate. >> speaking of that back in 1993, that nfl move the intrb out osuperbowl away from the ph, although it reawarded that in 1996. did that have any bearing on governor brewer's decision? >> as of 20 years ago, that is something people still have in mind so i do think that was a factor. it's not just the super bowl. we want to get into the rotation for the super bowl, we are also in the rotation for college football championship games, we're trying to going the ncaa

championship game here and all sorts of events we can't afford to lose. >> speaking of that, how many of the organizations expressed their views and on what side do they fall? >> the phoenix sun and the phoenix mercury both came out condemning senate bill 1062 and they wanted to see a veto clearly. >> so going forward peter do you think sports will be even more inclined to come to arizona, is that the hope of the state at this point? >> i think the hope, although there will still be a bit of a hangover with this. we started spring training baseball, we have nascar rating, and we can't afford to have that kind of interruption in tourism

industry. >> and concerts, no? >> during the mlk controversy we did lose some concerts and also with the sb 1070 the immigration bill we lost concerts for that as well. >> peter corbett, sports business reporter for the arizona republic, thanks so much for the insight. >> you're welcome michael. >> opponents for the bill 1072, brought up the buying community as the reason for the governor to veto that bill. the league is starting to see some of those financial benefits. the brooklyn nets 98 jersey, collins, wears number 98 as a tribute to matthew shepherd, the gay student beaten to death. he will wear that jersey tonight in portland, he had to wear 46 when he played his first game on

sunday, but now he wears this number. >> thank you. billions of dollars hidden from the irs, the lega owners illegaf offshore banks. mike viqueria joins us from washington, d.c. >> volumes and volumes of pages. some james bond villains might have nothing on certain swiss bankers. but the accusation is billions of dollars have been hidden in swiss banks causing the u.s. treasury untold millions. >> it's the stuff of countless spy novels but now some senators say it's all too real. as much as $12 billion hid be hn away in swiss bank accounts. none of it taxed. >> what do you say to bankers

coming close to home? >> top officials to credit swisse, helped investors evade taxes. kerry brady duggan was contrite. >> credit swissse regrets heartily that we had some swiss based private bankers who appear to have violated u.s. law. >> duggan claimed a rogue group, cloak and dagger. parchg statements were slipped into the pages of a copy of sports illustrated and handed to the client. a bank branch in the zurich airport where clients never had to heave airport grounds. each traction account transactions were immediately

shredded. it was done without filing any u.s. tax forms. >> the jig's up. >> they are squeezed between u.s. and swiss law. which prevents them from revealing all but a few. >> do you think you're going to be quighted in a swiss court is the swiss government going to prosecute you? is that your fear? good that is my fear. >> so you have double jeopardy. >> where would you iek to spend time? -- like to spend time? >> it is a tough decision. >> urging the justice department to do more to find and prosecute tax cheats and demand swiss government operate above board. >> how many key executives have you been held accountable i mean fired? >> we basically determined to shut this business down. >> and john after the senators got finished grilling the ceo and other officials of the

credit swisse, the facilitate justice for their part says it is not just credit swisse they're looking into. how much has been lost into the u.s. treasury coffers, unable to say. >> mike viqueria, in washington, thank you. freedom of the press will be the spotlight of the ghoab for what's been called an international day of action. events are underway in sydney australia, focusing on troubles journalists around the world. the three al jazeera journalis journalists, baher mohamed, peter greste and mohamed fahmy, charged with aiding a terrorist

group, something al jazeera vee metropolitanly denies. hugh, why did you decide to speak out on this? >> well, i think the fact that there is an australian, peter greste caught up in this, it helps us as australians to kind of refocus on a much larger issue. it's plainly been an issue around the world. over 100 journalists were killed last year, according to the international federation of journalists. we saw justice week in hong kong of all places, a liberal minded np editor being brutally attacked. it is not a save world to be a journalist. just brings again an opportunity for us to look at these issues

and also to exert such quiet, soft pressure as we can on the egyptian authorities to think again about what they're doing. >> as you say there are many other countries where journalists are in danger. but what specifically do you think is going on in egypt right now? >> well, it's hard to say. it's plainly the power vacuum remains effectively from the events of the last year or so. there is freight fear, obviously, by those -- great fear, of course by those trying to run the government at the moment that it could easily fall out of their control. the key point is whoever is going to govern egypt in the near future is going to need the legitimacy of the people and the legitimacy of the world, the message i would like to fet out today to those people -- get out today to those people, that that

legitimate meas canno-- legitimt be, reporting both sides of a very complex story, in fact all sides of a very complex story it is just not proper to put them in jail on charges that wouldn't be sustained outside egypt. this is not going to do anything for the legitimacy of those powerful figures inside jeebt must have and -- egypt must have and certainly crave. >> the president of venezuela is now threatening to kick out some cnn journalists and others, and suggesting that they're trying to overthrow the government. we've heard this before in other countries. why is this problem growing right now, do you think? >> well, the easiest thing for

any regime under pressure, it's not just governments by the way. of course you have other powerful figures whether they are drug cartels or other organizations, they don't like to have the light shown -- shone in the dark corners. its job in many ways is to challenge those in power. when countries have a sense of security about themselves and who they are, they don't need to do this kind of stuff. they don't even think of doing this kind of stuff in an ideal world. but it is almost a signal of regimes struggling for legitimacy, that they try to turf out, for critics who like to speak. the lesson for history again and again and again is that whenever there is a crushing of free press, whenever there is a crushing of free speech there is

never a better outcome as a consequence of that. it is a perpetual fight, it is a practical terms a daily fight to see that they actually exist. >> hugh remington, thank you for your support of our colleagues at al jazeera and thank you for talking to us. we appreciate it. there is chilling evidence tonight of the tragic situation in syria. palestinian refugees who have been trapped in a camp in damascus for the past eight months. christopher gunnes is a spokesman for the agency and he talks to us about the situation in that camp in tonight's first person report. >> as can you see from that extraordinary iconic image, as far as the eye can see there are gaunt, pallid figures who for months have been living under

siege, deprived of the most basic commodities of life. food, water, medicine, electricity, heat and warmth in one of the most cruel winters we have seen in this region. so what they describe is a portrait of intense and profound tragic civilian suffering. we have reports of women dying in childbirth because of the hack of medical care, of wide -- lack of medical care, widespread reports of children and infants with mall nutrition, u.n. member state reduced to eating animal feed. i think that says as much as feeds to say. camp because things are so desperate there can improve radically and exponentially. baby came to us with his mother, he was 14 years old, and he looked like a five month old baby and the doctor who treated

him quite honestly said he was going to die. now after just a month or so of proper food, of vitamins, of dietary supplements, that little boy is about the right size, about the size of a 14 month old baby. there are camps which are inaccessible and frankly what we saw in yarmuk beg our bheaf. and we can only hope and pray that things are not as bad in other places. but that would be helping -- hoping against rational thought. the humanitarian workers on the ground are calling for secure substantial and sustained humanitarian access. that means that we must get aid in but we must also be able to evacuate the women, the children, the dying, the sick, the elderly, the needy the security council spoke with one voice, it was rare and let's hope the parties on the ground are listening.

>> the camp at yarmuk is down to 18,000, down from 60,000 during the war. the car show of another kind, the cars swallowed up by the sinkhole now on view for everyone to see.

>> well, in other weather news, we are dealing with those cold temperatures still in effect in the northern plains and great

lakes. we have warnings and watches out, blizzard warnings from minnesota and north dakota as well as iowa, a lot of wind chill, extreme in that area. people are going to be waking up to these temperatures tomorrow. minneapolis minus 11, bismarck pine us 15°. temperatures barely go belove the zero mark in those -- above the disclosure mark in those areas. minus 30 in fargo and that is not including what the wind chill is going to be doing across that area. here across the southeast it has been a very rainy day, houston to jacksonville, florida, you can see on highway 10 it has been a major problem. atlanta, this is what you're going to be seeing for temperatures over the next five days, temperatures are very nice but the overnight lows are quite low thursday morning at 22°,

getting a little bit warmer as you go towards saturday. that's a look at your weather, news is coming up right after this. >> on display earlier this month, a sinkhole swallowed up

eight cars from the corvette museum. >> we got a call in the early morning hours on wednesday, february 12th, that our security alarm system was going off, the motion detectors and so, when we got staff out to the museum, discovered that a sinkhole had opened up certified of the museum. and at first people thought there was a fire at the museum. and then discovered that it was a sinkhole. and initially, i thought oh, it's just where a little bit of the ploor and the walkway has -- floor and the walkway has a divot in it. i didn't think it was a massive hole in the middle of the museum. found out we had lost eight cars. it was really heartbreaking to hear the list of cars because not only do we have some that are significant to corvette history but even the cars that were donated to us, those were people's prize possessions. i know that it breaks those

people's hearts just as much as us to know that they are in a sinkhole and damaged. right now, we do have a view witwindow set up where people wo are visiting the museum can actually look into the sky dome, see the work that's going on, and then see a little bit of the sinkhole. you know we have had so many people that have reached out, and they really want to see the cars being pulled out of the hole and then see what they look like when they come out. one couple that donated a red corvette, they did drive 13 hours from florida just to come see the sinkhole. and their car is one of the two unfortunately that we aren't really sure where in the dirt it is. it was built to be a race car and something that they took to tracks all over. they love to drive it and race in it. and it was kind of like an extended part of their family, so to speak. so i know it was very heartbreaking for them to see that this had happened.

the ones under the dirt, there's no telling what they're going to look when they come out. people are just curious. this is an act of mother nature and sinkholes aren't common everywhere. they are in kentucky but other parts of america don't have this kind of thing. so there's a lot of curiosity that goes with it. >> that was katy frazanelli which the national corvette museum. it is a planetary bonanza. nah ah says it has discovered the -- nasa says it has discovered the mother lode of planets. nasa says four of them are the right size and the right distance from their stars to potentially support life. joining us now is astro70s astrt

sarah seger. >> we consider this a big deal in ex owoplanets. you jumped to the question we are all asking ourselves every single day. that's why we get up early and stay up late. there are many steps on the paths to doing this, this is one of the paths to life. >> how big are the planets? >> the planets are kind of far. they are thousands of light years away. if we can travel by the speed of light, which we cannot get there by any means, would it take thousands of years to get there. they are very far. but the kepler census, they try to figure out how many people of what kinds are there. that's what we're doing.

>> can you explain the process, as you said, it's a pretty big deal. 700 new planets. how does suddenly we figure out there are -- i didn't figure it out, someone else figured out that there's 700 new planets? >> the funny thing is it's a 30 year process. there's many ways to find planets. consider a space telescope, build a space telescope, launch it, have it take data for four years, then it took another couple of years to figure out how to validate them to figure out how they are planets. that's in a nutshell the last few decades. >> after the last few decades now the planets have been discovered. where does the research go from here? >> the great thing about kepler, is kepler space telescope has told us that plawl are small --

small planets are very common. we feel that most stars should have rocky planets. this is a big deal for us. as we push our technology, we know they are out there, we just have to have the technology ready to roll. >> it's exciting new information and we appreciate you bringing it to us and explaining it to us in ways that we can understand. thanks, sarah. >> and coming up. all new tonight on al jazeera america, at 11:00 eastern time. california citrus farmers who have survived the deaf stating drought have another tough crisis on their hands, the disease that is devastating their crops, what they are doing to survive. and the soccer ball that might make it easier for children in some of the roughest places on earth. and here is an image that caught our attention, in tonight's freeze frame. it comes from st. peter's square

in the vatican. pope francis, breathing his mini me. people gathered in the square, not too sure he really likes being there. but in the meantime, it looks like he got a lot of attention. anyway, the headlines coming up right after this. >> aging america continues... healtly retirees lending a hand to their aging neighbors. >> it's been tough gettin' old... >> a story of humanity and dignity. >> everybody needs a little bit

of help sometimes... >> we can do it! >> on al jajeera america this this this

. welcome to al jazeera america. i am john siegenthaler seeing in new york. here are tonight's top stories. arizona governor jan brewer has vetoed a bill that wouldv allowed business to see serve gay os religious grounds. it's been debated since the

arizona legislature approved the bill last week. in announcing her decision, brewer said religious liberty is a core mesh and arizona value and so is non-discrimination. in texas another victory for gay rights supporters. a federal judge struck down the ban on same-sex marriage. it says it deprives equal protection but the judge stayed a motion. governor rick perry says the state will continue fighting for the right to determine its own laws. in ukraine, tensions are running high between supporters and opponents of the country's protest movement. pro-russia demonstrators clashed with opposition supporters in crimea. they opposed the change of government in kiev where nominees for u crane's interim leadership were announced today. serious charges of misconduct in the military. the army disqualified hundreds of soldiers serving in sensitive victims after a sexual assault review. the soldiers are being linked to

child abuse and drunk driving. those are the headlines. i am john siegenthaler seeing. see you back here. "america tonight with joy joie chen is up next. you can always get the latest on aljazeera.com. on "america tonight," ice boulders, ice jam. sure, it's winter. cold happens. but this is one for a lot of different record books and worries for what's ahead. >> when the ice comes up, if it comes out of the banks and it pushes up on the banks, anything in its way, it will push it out of the way. >> a new face-off? u cra ukraine. new clashes and questions about neighbor russia's military moves